Chapter 177 Forgive the Prince?

Xie Yao's breath was caught in her throat.

Atractylodes macrocephala?

That means...

Qiliang gritted his teeth and said it all in one breath.

"Bai Zhu simply sold the house to someone at the pawnshop. After I found out, I checked the pawnshop's several property deeds on Nanhuai Street under the pretext of renting the property. I saw with my own eyes that the landlord of Courtyard C on Nanhuai Street was none other than the King of Jingbei!"

After saying this, he lowered his head and dared not say anything more.

Xie Yao narrowed her eyes, looked past him, and her gaze fell on a corner of Fuguang Courtyard, where there were six pairs of wild geese kept in golden cages.

Xie Mingan bribed some officials and deliberately left some evidence, and the owner of the house with the evidence was actually... Xiao Yizi?

Could it be that the person Xie Mingan bribed was King Jingbei?

The image of the prince acting like a wild and unruly person a few days ago after getting drunk flashed through her mind.

The man who was afraid that she would see her leg injury, gave her a scabbard, accompanied her to get back her mother's dowry, and insisted on asking her what she wanted to do in the raging fire, could he be Xie Mingan's backer?

Recently, Xiao Yizi seems to be busy, but what is he busy with?

Countless thoughts were swirling in her mind.

Xie Yao felt that everything went too smoothly after her rebirth.

She became a wild goose trapped in a cage. Because everything went smoothly and she had no worries about food and drink, she gradually lost her vigilance. Her every move was exposed to Xiao Yizi's sight, and she lost the ability to fly.

But soon, she forced herself to calm down.

She couldn't make a conclusion based on just one house.

Manager Wang said that he gave a golden-eyed jade Buddha to a nobleman six years ago. At that time, Xiao Yizi was eighteen years old. Although he had made great military achievements, he had not yet been crowned king for his merits in following the emperor, and he could not influence the court. Why should Xie Mingan, a civil servant, please him?

"You don't need to investigate this matter any further."

A sharp light flashed in Xie Yao's eyes, and she spoke in a calm tone.

"Yes." Qiliang retreated and didn't dare to say anything more.

Xie Yao didn't want to let the suspicion last overnight.

She stood there, looking at Liuxiayuan next door, waiting for Xiao Yizi to come over.

A moment later, Bai Mi came forward, her tone somewhat complicated: "Princess, the prince will stay at Fuguangyuan tonight."

Xie Yao raised an eyebrow: "Your Highness, have you been very busy these days?"

"Busy, very busy."

Bai Su avoided her gaze and asked guiltily, "Princess, if the prince did something bad, would you forgive him?"

Xie Yao's eyes were deep: "Then wait until the prince is done with his work and ask me the answer in person."

Bai Mi's mouth twitched, and she had no choice but to nod and leave.

Back at Fuguangyuan, he and Baizhu looked at each other, wailing in pain: "My Lord, please don't let Baizhu and I try the peach blossom pastry anymore. It's too—"

Xiao Yizi: "It's so delicious?"

Baimei: "It's too disgusting!"

Bai Zhu silently ate another piece, then looked at the prince sitting in a wheelchair in front of him, his face and robes stained with flour, and nodded vigorously.

Bai Su gritted his teeth and said, "If you are a man, bring it to the princess yourself and see if she will eat it!"

"You're right." Xiao Yizi's peach blossom eyes curved, and he looked easy to talk to.

Bai Zhu didn't believe it. He felt that the prince in front of him had become the prince of the Marquis of Jingbei.

Then, the prince uttered two words quietly: "Finish eating."

White mulberry: “…”

He didn't know whether the princess forgave the prince or not, and he didn't want to forgive him anymore.

The next day, there were still many guests at Yunhe Tower in the evening.

In the private room named Ren on the second floor, Xie Mingan sat by the window, looking outside. He was waiting for Qiu Shui.

What Xie Mingan didn't know was that in the No. 1 box at the head, Xie Yao and Xu Susu were sitting there leisurely drinking tea, followed by Changsi and Sang Ruo respectively.

"Mom, do you still remember that when I was a child, you brought me to Yunhe Tower for dinner?" Xie Yao asked with curved eyes.

Xu Susu: "It happened ten years ago, yet you remember it clearly."

A gentle smile played on her lips as she thought back to her daughter when she was little.

"Ayao, not only are you working hard, but your mother is also trying her best to help you," she said, turning back to ask Changsi, "How are those shops doing?"

Chang Si nodded, and in the face of Xie Yao's puzzled gaze, she replied, "Don't worry, Madam. All ten shops have changed hands, and the price I offered wasn't even enough to cover the severance pay that Marquis Wenchang gave to the shop assistants."

She then said that in the past few days, under the operation of Xu Susu and Xu Zhixing, all ten shops of the Xie family in Beijing were closed.

The person who bought the shop was Xu Susu.

Xie Mingan still refused to give her a portion of her dowry, but it didn't matter. The shop run by the Xie family was already struggling.

If Xie Mingan wants to maintain his good reputation, he must give those guys severance pay, and I'm afraid he will feel the pain again.

Xu Susu now has plenty of energy and means to erode the Xie family bit by bit.

She said, "Sang Ruo, go tell this to Lord Wenchang later. Tell him that if there is no divorce, I, Xu Susu, can make everything under the name of the Xie family go bankrupt."

"After that, go meet someone else."

Xie Yao raised her eyebrows. She didn't even know who her mother wanted Sang Ruo to meet.

However, she didn't ask any more questions.

On the other side, Jiang Si was guarding the door. He saw Qiu Shui from a distance and called out to him affectionately on purpose.

Xie Mingan waved his hand and let him go.

Qiu Shui saluted and said, "Uncle."

"What's wrong with your face?" Xie Mingan looked at her and asked casually.

Qiu Shui shuddered all over. The slap mark on her cheek was actually difficult to see, but in order to prevent Wen Changbo from getting suspicious, she still applied thick makeup.

Little did he know that the more this happened, the more vigilant Xie Mingan became.

"I'm fine, it was Jiang Si who said he liked my makeup."

Qiu Shui lowered his head and answered obediently.

Xie Mingan saw her eyes flickering and became suspicious.

On second thought, Qiu Shui had been lurking beside Old Master Xu for many years and was his most important spy in the Xu family. If he pushed her into a corner, it would be more trouble than it would take.

Xie Mingan narrowed his gaze, softened his tone, and asked about Mr. Xu's health again.

Qiu Shui picked up some insignificant words until Xie Mingan said:

"Mr. Xu only lives in his Beijing villa for one or two months a year. Some things will be too late to deal with once he returns to his hometown in Jiangzhou. Qiushui, you are the head maid of the villa and are deeply trusted by the old man. Sending him to the west with a bowl of Hedinghong should not be difficult for you."

Qiu Shui trembled all over and knelt on the ground in fear: "Master, I don't have any red-crowned crane."

She wanted to wait for Wenchang Bo to hand over the Crane's Beak Red to her, which should also be considered as evidence of her guilt.

Xie Mingan frowned: "Crane's crown red, isn't it very common?"

Qiu Shui kept shaking his head.

Xie Mingan said, "After the matter is accomplished, you can put all the blame on the cook and housekeeper of the Xu family's villa. I will arrange a good future for you."

For a moment, Qiu Shui's heart was even moved.

But thinking that Princess Jingbei's men might be hiding outside at this moment, she had no choice but to say, "But I really can't get that poison."

"Forget it, you go back first. Don't act rashly recently. Let me think about it and pick a good day for Xu Shiquan..." Xie Mingan frowned.

"yes."

Qiu Shui left in a hurry, thinking that it was a good thing that Wenchang Bo had delayed his action, so that he could live a few more days.

After returning, she pleaded with the princess and the lady of the earl's house. The lady of the earl's house was soft-hearted, and she might not be sold out.

As Qiu Shui left, Jiang Si walked into the private room and said, "This damn girl has learned to lie now. The person who just passed the message to her told me that she did something wrong in the other courtyard a few days ago and was slapped. That's why she put on makeup today."

He said disdainfully, "You say you like her, but it seems you're afraid that you'll get rid of her after you're done with her, and you're trying to control me. Don't worry, I'll go to the Xu family compound tonight and find her. I'll make her submit in bed, and then she'll do my bidding."

"What?!"

Xie Mingan stood up suddenly.

"You said the slap marks on her face were from something she did wrong at the Xu Family Villa?"

Jiang Si: "Yes, she——"

Xie Mingan interrupted him, his chest heaving violently: "Idiot!"

"Ms. Xu and Xie Yao have been at the Xie family these past few days. This damned maid was slapped and deliberately hid it from me. She must have been instigated by Xie Yao!"

Jiang Si was stunned. "Uncle, Uncle, no way, I've only seen her once a few days ago in the past six months. Besides, we saved her life, how could she possibly betray you?"

Xie Mingan's eyes darkened and he became uncertain.

However, when it comes to Mr. Xu, that is his hope of turning the tables.

If Qiu Shui had really been instigated by Xie Yao, and he was completely unaware of it, and still handed the matter over to her, wouldn't it be like the return banquet of King Jingbei, a useless effort?

At the return party, Fang'er's sudden betrayal was still vivid in his mind, and he was so angry that his chest ached.

"Don't be afraid of ten thousand, just be prepared for the worst."

"Take your men and go catch up with her now," Xie Mingan said sternly, "get rid of her and don't leave any traces behind."